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This
website www.philippinesmyphilippines.com
is for all of us. The man who initially bankrolled this project is
also a volunteer although registered under his name; it's for all of us.
This, as originally planned becomes our forum on how those from
back home and overseas, especially those in the US, and Canada could lead
to finding a common cause so we can be together as one people, because
its the future of our children that will benefit for the change that we are all longing
for. We cannot change those running the
Philippines
;
they will remain corrupt and indifferent from all of us. They still will stay
"thieves" and still going to kill each other to maintain their grip to
power that they think the only way of survival. May all of us overseas,
from the
US
to
Canada
to Eastern and
Western Europe
, to
Greenland
and even
Iceland
,
support each other and be proud of our heritage once and for all. So, let's
wake up and work together regardless of which province we came from. This is our
future we are going to mold... for our children to the next one hundred years.

There are two theories on the origins of the
first Filipinos, the inhabitants of what will later be called the Philippine
Islands and eventually the Republic of the
Philippines
. See the Early
Inhabitants of the Philippine Islands.

In the beginning of the 3rd century, the
inhabitants of Luzon
island were in contact and trading with East Asian sea-farers and merchants
including the Chinese. In the 1400's the Japanese also established a trading
post at Aparri in
Northern Luzon
.

In 1380, Muslim Arabs arrived at the Sulu
Archipelago and established settlements which became mini-states ruled by a Datu.
They introduced Islam in the southern parts of the archipelago including some
parts of
Luzon
and were under the control of the Muslim sultans of
Borneo
. They had a significant influence over the region for a couple of hundreds
years. The Malay Muslims remained dominant in these parts until the 16th
century.

Philippine History During the Spanish
Colonial Times

In 1521, Ferdinand
Magellan, a Portuguese explorer who was serving the Spanish crown, landed in
Samar
Island
on his voyage to circumvent the globe. He explored the islands and named it
Archipelago of San Lazaro. Magellan was killed during a rebellion led by a Datu
named Lapu Lapu in
Mactan
Island
(adjacent to
Cebu
Island
).
Spain
continued to send expeditions to the island for financial gain and on the
fourth expedition, Commander Ruy Lopez de Villalobos, named the islands:
Philippines
, after Prince Philip (later King Philip II), heir to the Spanish throne. Spain
ruled the
Philippines
for 356 years.

In
1565, King Philip II
appointed Miguel
Lopez de Legazpi as the first Governor-General of the
Philippines
. Legazpi chose
Manila
to be it's capital because of it's natural harbor.
Spain
's legacy was the conversion of the people to Catholicism and the creation of
the privileged landed class. Because of abuses and suppression of the Spaniards,
a Propaganda Movement emerged with the aims for equality between Filipinos and
Spaniards. The arrest of propagandist Dr.
Jose Rizal and execution in 1896 gave fresh momentum to Filipino rebels to
fight against
Spain
.

The secret society of the Katipunan,
founded by Andres Bonifacio attacked the Spanish Garrison in
San Juan
with little success, while Katipuneros in
Cavite
Province
headed by Emilio
Aguinaldo defeated the Guardia Civil in
Cavite
. Aguinaldo's victories lead him to be elected as head of the Katipunan. The
factions of Bonifacio & Aguinaldo fought and lead to the trial and execution
of Bonifacio on Aguinaldo's orders. Aguinaldo later drafted a constitution and
established the Republic of Biak-na-Bato
in Bulacan province. In 1897, an impasse between the Spanish government and
Aguinaldo arose. After negotiations between the two sides, Aguinaldo accepted an
amnesty from the Spaniards and US$ 800,000.00 in exchange for his exile to
Hong Kong
with his government.

Philippine History During the American
Era

The Spanish-American
war which started in
Cuba
, changed the history of the
Philippines
. On
May 1, 1898
, the Americans led by U.S. Navy Admiral George Dewey, in participation of
Emilio Aguinaldo, attacked the Spanish Navy in
Manila
Bay
. Faced with defeat, the
Philippines
was ceded to the United States by
Spain
in 1898 after a payment of US$ 20 million to
Spain
in accordance with the "Treaty
of Paris" ending the Spanish-American War. On
June 12, 1898
, Filipinos led by Emilio Aguinaldo declared independence. This declaration was
opposed by the
U.S.
who had plans of taking over the colony. And this led to a guerrilla war
against the Americans. In 1901, Aguinaldo was captured and declared allegiance
to the
United States
. On the same year, William
Howard Taft was appointed as the first
U.S.
governor of the
Philippines
. The
U.S.
passed the Jones
Law in 1916 establishing an elected Filipino legislature with a House of
representatives & Senate. In 1934, the Tydings-McDuffie
Act was passed by the U.S. Congress, established the Commonwealth of the
Philippines
and promised Philippine independence by 1946. The law also provided for the
position of President of the Commonwealth of the
Philippines
. On the
May 14, 1935
elections, Manuel L.
Quezon won the position of President of the Philippine
Commonwealth.

In accordance with the Tydings-McDuffie Act
of 1934, The Philippines was given independence on
July 4, 1946
and the Republic of the
Philippines
was born.

Philippine History During the Japanese
Occupation

On
December 8, 1941
, the Japanese invades the
Philippines
hours after bombing
Pear
Harbor
in
Hawaii
. While the forces of
Gen.
Douglas MacArthur retreated to
Bataan
, the Commonwealth government of President Quezon moved to
Corregidor
Island
.
Manila
was declared an open city to prevent further destruction. After the fall of
Bataan
on
April 9, 1942
and
Corregidor
, In March 1942, MacArthur & Quezon fled the country and by invitation of President
Roosevelt, the Commonwealth government went into exile to Washington D.C.
American and Filipino forces surrendered in
May 6, 1942
. Soon a guerrilla war against the Japanese was fought by the Philippine &
American Armies while Filipinos were enduring the cruelty of the Japanese
military against civilians.

Prior to Quezon's exile, he advised Dr. Jose P. Laurel to head and cooperate
with the Japanese civilian government in the hope that the collaboration will
lead to a less brutality of the Japanese towards the Filipinos. Rightly or
wrongly, President Laurel and his war time government was largely detested by
the Filipinos.

In October 1944, Gen. MacArthur with
President Sergio Osmeña (who assumed the presidency after Quezon died on
August 1, 1944
in exile in
Saranac Lake
,
New York
) returned and liberated the
Philippines
from the Japanese.

The Philippine Republic

On
July 4, 1946
, Manuel Roxas of the Nationalista Party was inaugurated as the first President
of the Republic of the Philippines. Roxas died in April 1948. He was
succeeded by Elpidio
Quirino. Both Roxas & Quirino had to deal with the Hukbalahap, a large
anti-Japanese guerrilla organization which became a militant group that
discredited the ruling elite. The group was eventually put down by Pres.
Quirino's Secretary of Defense, Ramon Magsaysay.

Magsaysay defeated Quirino in the 1953
elections. He was a popular president and largely loved by the people. Magsaysay
died in an airplane crash on
March 17, 1957
and was succeeded by Carlos Garcia.

Diosdado Macapagal won the 1961 presidential
elections and soon after he changed history by declaring June 12 as independence
day - the day Emilio Aguinaldo declared independence in
Cavite
from
Spain
in 1898. Aguinaldo was the guest of honour during the fist Independence Day
celebrations in 1962.

Philippine
History During the Martial Law Regime

Ferdinand
E. Marcos won the presidency in 1965 and was the first to be re-elected for
a second term in office. Marcos He embarked on an ambitious public works program
and maintained his popularity through his first term. His popularity started to
decline after his re-election due to perceived dishonesty in the 1969 campaign,
the decline in economic growth, government corruption and the worsening peace
& order. He declared Martial Law in 1972 near the end of his second &
final term in office. Staunch oppositionist, Senator
Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino (later went on self exile to the
U.S.
) & Senator Jose Diokno were one of the first to be arrested. During the
Martial Law years, Marcos held an iron grip on the nation with the support of
the military. Opposition leaders we imprisoned and the legislature was
abolished. Marcos ruled by presidential decrees.

Post Martial Law up to the Present Time

The
21-year dictatorial rule of Marcos with wife Imelda ended in 1986 following a
popular uprising that forced them to exile to
Hawaii
. Corazon "Cory" Aquino,
the wife of exiled and murdered opposition leader Benigno Aquino who was
perceived to have won a just concluded snap election was installed as president.
Aquino restored civil liberties, initiated the formation of a new constitution
and the restoration of Congress. On
September 16, 1991
, despite the lobbying of Aquino, the Senate rejected a new treaty that would
allow a 10-year extension of the
US
military bases in the country.

In the1992 elections, Pres. Aquino endorsed
Secretary of Defense Fidel
Ramos as her successor, which Ramos won with a slight margin over his rival,
Miriam Defensor-Santiago. During the Ramos presidency, he advocated
"National Reconciliation" and laid the ground work for the resolution
of the secessionist Muslim rebels in the southern Philippine Island of Mindanao.
The Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) led by Nur Misuari, signed a peace
agreement with the government. However a splinter group, The Moro Islamic
Liberation Front (MILF) led by Hashim Salamat continued to fight for an Islamic
state. Ramos worked for the economic stability of the country and the
improvement of the infrastructure facilities like telecommunications, energy and
transportation.

Joseph
Ejercito Estrada, a popular actor, succeeded Ramos in 1998 with Gloria
Macapagal-Arroyo (daughter of former President Diosdado Macapagal) as his
Vice-President. Estrada's lack of economic & management skills plunged the
economy deeper as unemployment increased and the budget deficit ballooned. In
October 2000, Estrada's close friend Luis "Chavit" Singson accused
Estrada of receiving millions of pesos from "Jueteng", an illegal
numbers game. Soon after, Congress impeached Estrada on grounds of bribery,
graft and corruption, betrayal of public trust and culpable violation of the
constitution. His impeachment trial at the Senate was however blocked by his
political allies in the Senate. Shortly after the evidence against Estrada was
blocked at the Senate, thousands of people rallied up at the EDSA Shrine, site
of the People Power Revolution which ousted Marcos in 1986.

In January 2001, the Supreme
Court declared Joseph Estrada unable to rule in view of mass resignations
from his government and declared Vice-President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo as his
constitutional successor. To this date, Estrada remains detained facing graft
charges before the Sandigan Bayan, the Anti-graft court.

Gloria
Macapagal-Arroyo, completed the remaining term of Estrada and run for
re-election against Fernando Poe, Jr., another popular actor and a friend of
Estrada in May 2004. Arroyo with her running mate Noli de Castro was eventually
proclaimed the winners of the Presidential & Vice-Presidential elections.
She has been advocating a change from a Presidential form of government to a
Parliamentary form of government.

Arroyo's husband & son has been rumored to be receiving money from gambling
lords and this has tainted her reputation. A tape recording of Arroyo talking
with a commissioner on elections surfaced establishing impropriety by Arroyo and
suggesting that she might have influenced the outcome of the last elections.
Demonstrations followed in June 2005 calling for Arroyo to resign.

On the eve of the anniversary of the "People
Power Revolution" on
February 24, 2006
, the government took pre-emptive measures to quash alleged plots to unseat
Arroyo through massive rallies and a coup. Arroyo declared a "State of
Emergency
" the next day mobilizing the police and the military averting any
destabilization moves.

May 14, 2007
- National Elections for Senators, Congressmen, Governors, Mayors and local
officials. Although there are instances of violence and allegations of cheating
specially in
Mindanao
, this elections is considered by many as one of the most peaceful elections
conducted in
Philippines
.

September 12, 2007
- Former President Joseph Ejercito Estrada is convicted of plunder by the Sandiganbayan,
the anti-graft court and is sentenced to 40 years imprisonment. He is the first
former president ever convicted of any crime in Philippine history. Six weeks
later, on October 26, Estrada was pardoned by President Arroyo.

The next general elections: presidential,
legislative and local elections will be held on
May 10, 2010
. President Arroyo is barred from running for re-election due to the 2-term
limit for presidents. This is the first computerized national elections in the
Philippines
.

A
record number Filipinos are dying from stroke, take a minute and learn more
about it!

Got
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Suggest
any topics that could possibly improve the country's politics and
economics...let's work together for a prouder identity to the world.

Why are
we politically and economically behind countries like
Japan
,Taiwan
,South
Korea
,Singapore
,Malaysia
,
other countries in the region and no one from our own government a

nd
business leaders seems to care? And, is it true that the
government is ran by corruptors and gunslingers?

This section will be busy discussing all allegations that our people are
accused of doing or practicing. Your feedback is very important for this
site... It's about time we all talk about those subjects and find ways
to improving our standing in the world community and once again gain the
respect and admiration we all used to have. All together, we can be very
productive as we are almost there, considered one of the most educated
people on earth , even Nelson Mandela learned something from our very
own national hero, Dr. Jose Rizal, that made him great. Want to know
more? Stay tuned.

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